I need a laptop...
 

So I'm getting a laptop. I don't have the money to get a good one, my dad doesn't want to spend money on a good one, and besides best wait until Ivy Bridge with those fancy 3D transistors. But I have a programming class, so my dad will buy $250-$400 thingy, and I get a job to pay for fancy IB laptop later. So, since I will have no graphics card, I therefore do not require Windows (games) and therefore paying for it is a waste of money, since I will just delete it first thing. So:

Does anyone know where I can get a laptop without Winbloze preinstalled? (I know about [url]http://www.system76.com/laptops/[/url] (really neat actually), but that doesn't qualify as the $250 my dad's looking at.)

[url]www.thinkpenguin.com[/url]

I'll be finding out just how real these guys are this week; I am ordering a router and external antennas and possibly some coax.

[QUOTE=Dubslow;285210]So I'm getting a laptop. I don't have the money to get a good one, my dad doesn't want to spend money on a good one, and besides best wait until Ivy Bridge with those fancy 3D transistors. But I have a programming class, so my dad will buy $250-$400 thingy, and I get a job to pay for fancy IB laptop later. So, since I will have no graphics card, I therefore do not require Windows (games) and therefore paying for it is a waste of money, since I will just delete it first thing. So:

Does anyone know where I can get a laptop without Winbloze preinstalled? (I know about [url]http://www.system76.com/laptops/[/url] (really neat actually), but that doesn't qualify as the $250 my dad's looking at.)[/QUOTE]

Our company sells refurbished laptops for about that amount...but unless you live near me you might spend that much again in shipping.

Maybe you could check with any large companies near year for a similar program?

[QUOTE=Christenson;285481][url]www.thinkpenguin.com[/url]

I'll be finding out just how real these guys are this week; I am ordering a router and external antennas and possibly some coax.[/QUOTE]
That looks really cool, but the lowest price is $450, for which I get an Atom. I can get an i3 (SB) at Best Buy for $350 (Winbloze though).

[QUOTE=petrw1;285485]Our company sells refurbished laptops for about that amount...but unless you live near me you might spend that much again in shipping.

Maybe you could check with any large companies near year for a similar program?[/QUOTE]
Could you please elaborate? What's your company? And Canada wouldn't be too much more expensive, right? (I'm in Illinois.) (Edit: Yikes, Chicago has a lot more people than all of Saskatchewan.)

[QUOTE=Dubslow;285496]That looks really cool, but the lowest price is $450, for which I get an Atom. I can get an i3 (SB) at Best Buy for $350 (Winbloze though).


Could you please elaborate? What's your company? And Canada wouldn't be too much more expensive, right? (I'm in Illinois.) (Edit: Yikes, Chicago has a lot more people than all of Saskatchewan.)[/QUOTE]

I used to work for SaskTel (the phone company); they have about 6,000 desktops and close to 1,000 Laptops. Each year 25% are deemed obsolete and get replaced; the obsoleted desktop or LapTop are taken by our Pioneer volunteer organization where they are cleaned; certified; refurbished, etc and then given to schools with the excess offered to employees for cheap: about $200 for desktops (something like a E6550 dual); about $250 for laptops (also dual).

With millions of people there must be some very large companies in Chicago with 10s of thousands of PCs on hand. Whether it is a 3 or even 6 year cycle, eventually they will be replaced; I hope they wouldn't throw away all those still usable PCs.